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What's the best type of paint to use for painting bike frames, it's steel if that makes a difference?

I want to do a custom paint job and mix a few colours in a gradient effect. Should I use enamel paid, or an off the shelf car paint etc?

Also what paint should I use for an undercoat, a car primer paint ??

many thanks

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  • Starter: Hardwearing/durable/abrasion resistant, waterproof, oilproof, and compatible with the frame materials.
    – Criggie
    Dec 4, 2018 at 17:49
  • There is a specific easy paint for this called Spray.Bike but it is not as hard wearing as a proper 2k or baked enamel finish. However it's cheap and designed for purpose and i believe genuinely unique.
    – Noise
    Apr 7, 2021 at 15:12

3 Answers 3

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Basically any paint that could be used on a car will work on a steel bike frame.

The better the paint the more robust it will be. Two-part epoxy based paints or powder coating are probably your best bets, but require specialized equipment. I think there are epoxy paints that do not require curing in an oven but you still need a spray gun.

You can probably use aerosol can paint with a self etching primer, meticulous preparation and good technique.

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  • appliance spray paint
    – Mazura
    Dec 4, 2018 at 22:35
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    @Mazura you should make that an answer and explain why you think it would work well for a bike. Dec 4, 2018 at 22:51
  • It's epoxy paint in a spray can; you don't need a gun.
    – Mazura
    Dec 5, 2018 at 21:28
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    @Mazura, Is it really epoxy though?. Two-part epoxy paint is mixed before spraying and then cures by a chemical process (often assisted by an oven). Anything that comes out of a spray can must dry by evaporation of a solvent. Dec 5, 2018 at 21:32
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    @Mazura agree with your last point for sure Dec 5, 2018 at 23:51
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Car paints will work fine, and car primers. There is one brand of paint that comes in rattle-cans and is specifically marketed for repainting bikes.

You could get a powdercoating shop to lay down a base coat--that would probably be inexpensive, and give you a durable protective layer under whatever paint you applied.

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    After the frame has been powder coated, threads, especially the bottom bracket, may need to be recut.
    – Carel
    Dec 5, 2018 at 8:55
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    Excellent point. Probably just chased, not recut, but I agree.
    – Adam Rice
    Dec 5, 2018 at 13:49
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    With proper masking, the threads inside the BB shell should be fine. Facing the shell, sure, but it would need to be a half-assed powdercoating job if you need to chase the threads.
    – Gabriel
    Dec 5, 2018 at 14:58
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Eastwood makes a 2k primer & clear coat so I've already primed it with their 2k spray and I plan on mixing my own liquid acrylic and sealing it with the 2k clear coat.

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